I Just Got a New (to me) Laptop!

"Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen" (sportwagen)
09/27/2014 at 00:40 • Filed to: New DD, Laptop, Mac, Macintosh, MBP, Macbook

So my 2007 MBP bit the dust (or so I thought) yesterday... so I got a new laptop! I got a 2012.5 MacBook Pro 13" A1278! It has a Core i7 at 2.9 GHz and 8 gigs of RAM. I already replaced the 750GB HDD with the 120GB SSD from my other Mac! For $575 I doubt you could get a better deal on a newish Mac!

Thanks dude on Craigslist!

DISCUSSION (19)

ToyDeathbot > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 00:44

Nice price all tha way!

Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen > ToyDeathbot
09/27/2014 at 00:46

Except... the glass screen cover is cracked :/ I can replace it for $20 though!

JGrabowMSt > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 00:49

Be really careful when you replace that glass though...When it breaks, it's serious business. I have an early 2011 15". The 2011-2012 are the last of the really good MacBook Pros...enjoy it!

Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen > JGrabowMSt
09/27/2014 at 00:52

I'll try... any pro-tips?

Manuél Ferrari > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 00:52

core i7?

8 GB RAM

Total nice price !

Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen > Manuél Ferrari
09/27/2014 at 00:53

Dual core "i7" (really an upclocked i5)

Manuél Ferrari > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 00:55

Ah. Still seems like a good deal

JGrabowMSt > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 00:58

Heat gun, and many many plastic spudgers. When in doubt, stop. Heat it up more. Once it starts to break up into tiny pieces, it's a nightmare. If you can't lift the whole broken pieces out at once, you risk scratching the screen behind it, so work slowly, heat it up a lot, and use as many plastic spudgers to work your way around the glass to lift it up. Many replacements aren't actually glass, they're lexan or plexiglass, and it's not really the same. Try to find an actual glass one. It will make a pretty big difference in how it looks and how transparent it is for the screen.

I don't think the 13" was ever offered with a matte finish display with that model. It would be pretty nice if you could just get the aluminum bezel, but that was a 15" only option I'm pretty sure.

Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen > JGrabowMSt
09/27/2014 at 01:02

I can get the heat gun from school (pottery class perks ;) but the spudgers... online. Also, suction cups???

JGrabowMSt > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 01:10

No suction cups, the glass will get too hot, and the suction cup will just pop right off the glass. Since the glass is already broken, you need to use a guitar pick to work your way under the glass, and spudgers to keep it separated from the adhesive.

Instead of spudgers, you could get a couple small guitar picks, and then use bass picks (because they're bigger) instead of spudgers. Might even be cheaper if there's a music store around you.

Start from whatever side is most intact, and get that separated first, but work as evenly as possible across the glass. Avoid cracking it or breaking it any more, and it should lift up and leave the screen clean and unscratched. The more you use to keep the glass separated, the better. Even having just a corner fall back down will be a PITA. The adhesive is pretty intense, and will bond back pretty quickly.

If you're tech savvy enough, take the whole display off the bottom of the laptop, so that you can get to it more easily. Also, when you order a new glass panel, order a rubber seal that goes around the edge. You'll basically destroy it with the heat and picks/spudgers, and it wont seal the same way once it's out, so just replace it while the whole thing is apart anyway.

Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen > JGrabowMSt
09/27/2014 at 02:01

Where could I find one of those pieces of rubber?

JGrabowMSt > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 02:04

The internet.

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > JGrabowMSt
09/27/2014 at 02:48

NYLON spudgers. You CANT get glass, no one makes it, and the aluminum bezel was a 15 and 17 inch only option. hair dryer works

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 02:50

NYLON spudgers. You CANT get glass, no one makes it, and the aluminum bezel was a 15 and 17 inch only option. hair dryer works. If the glass is broken, just chip it off. no need for suction cups

Dsscats > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 03:05

That's the exact same laptop I have!

mattoverdrive > Sportwägen, Driver Of The Red Sportwagen
09/27/2014 at 08:39

Not entirely accurate. An i7 dual core will have hyper threading, so it can handle four processing threads; an i5 doesn't.

That's a pretty sweet deal you got. I have to look into replacing my 2009 27" iMac in the not too distant future; I'm thinking MBP Retina.

JGrabowMSt > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s
09/27/2014 at 10:37

I work in a repair shop, I have gotten replacement glass before. Hair driers take too long and often arent high enough heat. A heat gun makes the whole process just a few minutes if you have a lot of experience.

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > JGrabowMSt
09/27/2014 at 13:11

with a heat gun you risk damaging the lcd, ive done it before, its not hat hard with a hair dryrer

JGrabowMSt > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s
09/27/2014 at 13:16

You'll only damage the LCD if you put the heat gun too close, and essentially do it all wrong. It's not hard with a hair drier, it just takes a lot longer.

I've done phones and MacBook Pros, if you're careful, it's fine, if you're basically waving the heat gun less than an inch away from the glass, then you're just asking for trouble.